Some Credit to Jimmy......

[newmexicuse]

He has done a masterful job in the way he has brought along this group.

In particular:

1. He has the D rapidly improving, both inside and out. Who would have believed that a backcourt of Ennis and Trevor would make us quickly forget MCW (other than that he keeps popping into headlines with triple doubles).

2. He has kept the faith with Trevor and it is paying off in spades. I gotta confess, I was as high as anybody on Trevor through the first half of last season, but then I became a doubter. Shame on me.

3. Some credit has to go to the staff for the way Ennis is running the O.

4. He knows when to put the game in CJ's hand.

5. He has figured out a way to make the composite of our individually flawed bigs reasonably effective.

6. He has really accelerated the devlopment of Jerami.

7. My only criticism is that I think there is talent that could help this season still sitting on the bench. Hopefully, somebody can rise & shine from that group during the next weak three game stretch & earn a spot into the rotation. We still need an effective backcourt player off the bench. So far Silent G plays too neutrally. We need to find out if he can be trusted more to make some plays or if Buss can contribute this season. Also, I would like to see if the other Tyler can be of some help.

 

[bballbeadle]

Credit - - - approved!

I love the way Ennis and Cooney look at each other when they're running down the court. Great eye contact. Don't know whether they did it in this game since I haven't watched it on the dvr yet. These guys are an awesome duo and will be back next year!

 

[CaptainJ]

Credit - - - approved!

I love the way Ennis and Cooney look at each other when they're running down the court. Great eye contact. Don't know whether they did it in this game since I haven't watched it on the dvr yet. These guys are an awesome duo and will be back next year!

This. +1

There looks to be fluid chemistry between them, possibly more than between any 2 other players on the team. Respect the chemistry.

 

[CorduroyG]

that boeheim guy is a pretty good coach, hes gonna take us places

 

[TBCuse11]

It really has been an amazing job by Jim so far. This team actually might be better than last year. I cant believe that Ennis is so polished as a frosh, and that Cooney is one of the top snipers in the country. Those two along with CJ and Grant (who can get to the hoop anytime they want, just need to finish) are a very potent group. This team could go deep.

I do agree that we need a 9th guy to crack the rotation. I think Patterson is the choice.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

I think Cooney has made some great strides, but playing alongside Ennis is always yielding some dividends for Cooney. I don't recall seeing a point guard that understood how to get a teammate going like this at such an early point in his career.

Just to be greedy, I'm hoping that Ennis' next evolution is to reward the bigs with good entry passes when they get good post position.

 

[cuseinseattle]

I agree on all your points. The backcourt is the thing that has really been a great suprise. They have exceeded my expecations for this point in the season by a good margin.

 

[igor]

I do like all of the points u make. he deserves praise. he has a few drawbacks. he's in the way of colemans development. every minute keita is on the court is a potential negative. he needs to keep Roberson engaged. trust me he's a keeper. cto considered banning me for calling jb a when he put the bench in with two minutes left to run out the clock. do u really think they wanted in. I think they were probably embarrassed. does he forget when he was a scrub.

 

[TBCuse11]

I do like all of the points u make. he deserves praise. he has a few drawbacks. he's in the way of colemans development. every minute keita is on the court is a potential negative. he needs to keep Roberson engaged. trust me he's a keeper. cto considered banning me for calling jb a when he put the bench in with two minutes left to run out the clock. do u really think they wanted in. I think they were probably embarrassed. does he forget when he was a scrub.

Coleman plays plenty. Keita is our best center overall. he will get the crunch times minutes, rightfully so.

 

[zhanjuzi]

I do like all of the points u make. he deserves praise. he has a few drawbacks. he's in the way of colemans development. every minute keita is on the court is a potential negative. he needs to keep Roberson engaged. trust me he's a keeper. cto considered banning me for calling jb a when he put the bench in with two minutes left to run out the clock. do u really think they wanted in. I think they were probably embarrassed. does he forget when he was a scrub.

Coleman is getting chances but is not doing much with them especially with his chucks at the hoop .. I'm surprised with the patience given to him so far.

As for the freshmen, actually I think it was only 58 secs remaining when they were subbed in. Yes, Roberson in particular did not look very enthusiastic. I can only hope that they are all busting their respective humps in practice so that when and if they are called upon (due to injury or whatever), they will be ready.

 

[stuckinbig11]

Just to be greedy, I'm hoping that Ennis' next evolution is to reward the bigs with good entry passes when they get good post position.

In my greed, I would hope that his entry passes to Baye come when he is ready for them and that DC2 does something with the ball quickly before everyone collapses on him.

 

[NineOneSeven]

Coleman plays plenty. Keita is our best center overall. he will get the crunch times minutes, rightfully so.

Only with regards to trapping in the back of the zone and the occasional back door pass. Everything else isn't even close, imo.

 

[NineOneSeven]

I do like all of the points u make. he deserves praise. he has a few drawbacks. he's in the way of colemans development. every minute keita is on the court is a potential negative. he needs to keep Roberson engaged. trust me he's a keeper. cto considered banning me for calling jb a when he put the bench in with two minutes left to run out the clock. do u really think they wanted in. I think they were probably embarrassed. does he forget when he was a scrub.

"do you really think they wanted in."

Never. Put the walk-ons in before them. Really is useless. I agree with you there.

 

[kuethstheman]

"do you really think they wanted in."

Never. Put the walk-ons in before them. Really is useless. I agree with you there.

I remember hearing that at least on one occasion he left the choice up to Mookie as to whether to go in or not at garbage time. Wonder if he gave them a choice last night. Thinking maybe not. After several years of the same routine, Mookie was a special case.

 

[NineOneSeven]

I remember hearing that at least on one occasion he left the choice up to Mookie as to whether to go in or not at garbage time. Wonder if he gave them a choice last night. Thinking maybe not. After several years of the same routine, Mookie was a special case.

Because he just loved jacking treys, haha.

 

[SWFLCUSE]

One thing that Boeheim does that I think is truly underrated is his ability to make half time adjustments. Last nigh is a perfect example, Indiana was hanging around with us going into half. Then when we came back out it was like we were playing a completely different game and it baffled the young Hoosiers.

 

[thebigeast44]

I don't think we NEED anyone past the 8 man rotation. I think Silent G is doing a solid job out there. I like BJ's potential down the line but I continue to believe he should have redshirted. Roberson and Patterson are physically ready to play but have more experienced players in front of them.

It will be fun to see all of them get some run in December. It remains to be seen how much they develop during the year. JB will only put them out there during the conference season if they can help us win.

And while some feel we'd be better off long term getting the young guys out there and risking a loss, JB does not feel that way. Nor do the majority of the coaches in the country who play 7-8 players as well. They are paid to win games. The youngsters will have their opportunities to help Syracuse win many games in the future. But we don't need them this year to do so. Let's Go Orange!

 

[TBCuse11]

One thing that Boeheim does that I think is truly underrated is his ability to make half time adjustments. Last nigh is a perfect example, Indiana was hanging around with us going into half. Then when we came back out it was like we were playing a completely different game and it baffled the young Hoosiers.

EVERY game this season, more or less, has been like that. He has made fantastic adjustments so far at halftime.

 

[kuethstheman]

And while some feel we'd be better off long term getting the young guys out there and risking a loss, JB does not feel that way. Nor do the majority of the coaches in the country who play 7-8 players as well. They are paid to win games. The youngsters will have their opportunities to help Syracuse win many games in the future. But we don't need them this year to do so. Let's Go Orange!

I thought he might change his approach after Arinze went down. Deshonte was overwhelmed against Butler.

That's the only time I can think of where lack of bench development really bit us. And that's assuming Deshonte would have been better if he'd had more experience. You'd think probably but no way to know.

 

[IthacaMatt]

I don't think we NEED anyone past the 8 man rotation. I think Silent G is doing a solid job out there. I like BJ's potential down the line but I continue to believe he should have redshirted. Roberson and Patterson are physically ready to play but have more experienced players in front of them.

It will be fun to see all of them get some run in December. It remains to be seen how much they develop during the year. JB will only put them out there during the conference season if they can help us win.

And while some feel we'd be better off long term getting the young guys out there and risking a loss, JB does not feel that way. Nor do the majority of the coaches in the country who play 7-8 players as well. They are paid to win games. The youngsters will have their opportunities to help Syracuse win many games in the future. But we don't need them this year to do so. Let's Go Orange!

All Silent G does so far is move the ball, play solid D and give us some additional rebounding. He is almost zero threat to score, he almost never looks for his shot. I hope that he becomes a little more daring and drives to the hoop or takes that open shot once in a while. He's kind of a glue guy right now, but he has to give us more.

 

[newmexicuse]

I don't think we NEED anyone past the 8 man rotation. I think Silent G is doing a solid job out there. I like BJ's potential down the line but I continue to believe he should have redshirted. Roberson and Patterson are physically ready to play but have more experienced players in front of them.

It will be fun to see all of them get some run in December. It remains to be seen how much they develop during the year. JB will only put them out there during the conference season if they can help us win.

And while some feel we'd be better off long term getting the young guys out there and risking a loss, JB does not feel that way. Nor do the majority of the coaches in the country who play 7-8 players as well. They are paid to win games. The youngsters will have their opportunities to help Syracuse win many games in the future. But we don't need them this year to do so. Let's Go Orange!

I think the problem is that we need another scorer off the bench. Too easy to get foul trouble with the new rules. We really do not have a scorer coming off the bench. Yes, you can quibble & throw out Jerami's name, but he is really a starter. This team has four guys who can score - Jerami, CJ, Ennis, and Cooney. Throw in some foul trouble and regular rotation time & we could be down to two scorers on the floor at a given time. That would make us easy to defend.

Looking to solve the problem - here are possible solutions:

1. A big - Rak or DC2 develops - I don't see Rak with that skillset and I can't see DC2 doing it consistently this season, though he will have some moments.

2. Silent G - I am not willing to say he can't do it, but he needs to change his mindset for certain. So far, I am on the fence about whether or not he has the skillset. He plays so passively on the O end it is hard to gauge what he might be able to do.

3. The other frosh - Well, since they haven't played the last four games, I haven't seen them, so I can only formulate second hand opinions. Let's just say that the world is correct and that BJ will need a developmental season to get stronger before he can contribute. That leaves Buss and the other Tyler. I have a feeling that one or both of them could be that guy if Jimmy gave them some minutes. Next three games will be key as they will probably get some run. It is the chance for one or both of them to show what they got. If it doesn't happen in this stretch, it isn't going to happen this season unless an injury dictates otherwise.

 

[thebigeast44]

I thought he might change his approach after Arinze went down. Deshonte was overwhelmed against Butler.

That's the only time I can think of where lack of bench development really bit us. And that's assuming Deshonte would have been better if he'd had more experience. You'd think probably but no way to know.

The possibility of an injury taking place to a key member of your team is certainly an argument for playing backup's additional minutes. Of course, you can't predict such things so you would essentially have to play all of them meaningful minutes to best prepare them to take over. Say 10 minutes a game. In 5 minutes, you barely get your feet wet. The problem is if we gave them all 10 minutes a game, we would very likely lose some games. And that would hurt our seeding etc. So I don't think it's worth losses just in case you might need one of them.

The way for each of them to earn minutes this year is to impress the coaches in practice. If one of them does that, they will get a chance. They all know they need to be ready at any time. It's up to each of them to do the work in practice to be ready when they are called.

 

[cliftonparksufan]

I do like all of the points u make. he deserves praise. he has a few drawbacks. he's in the way of colemans development. every minute keita is on the court is a potential negative. he needs to keep Roberson engaged. trust me he's a keeper. cto considered banning me for calling jb a when he put the bench in with two minutes left to run out the clock. do u really think they wanted in. I think they were probably embarrassed. does he forget when he was a scrub.

Maybe those guys will get some minutes vs High Point or Binghamton.

 

[thebigeast44]

Agree completely on the comments that Silent G needs to be more aggressive on offense. I think he is still getting his game back after not playing much at Duke and redshirting last year. I'm happy where he is right now and hope as the season progresses he looks to do more and his teammates encourage him to do more.

 

[IthacaMatt]

I think the problem is that we need another scorer off the bench. Too easy to get foul trouble with the new rules. We really do not have a scorer coming off the bench. Yes, you can quibble & throw out Jerami's name, but he is really a starter.

3. The other frosh - Well, since they haven't played the last four games, I haven't seen them, so I can only formulate second hand opinions. .

I agree with you. I was hoping Silent G would be a scoring threat, but he's not. The most likely scorers who are still on the bench are BJ, who looked pretty good from 3 point range in Canada - and who happened to play at the top of the zone in his minute of mop up time last night.

The other viable option is Roberson. If Grant gets in foul trouble or isn't producing, I think Roberson can score for us inside. He's got those intangibles about him. His game kind of reminds me of Ryan Blackwell, who was a very useful and under-appreciated player for us. He knew how to score. He could board, he could hit the 3 pointer, and he could even handle the ball a bit against pressure.